The company’s product manager Beatrice Foucher says that two years after the release of Sandero, also at the Geneva motor show, Dacia returns with Duster, the only SUV for a price of a city car.
For a start, Dacia Duster will be traded in Europe, Turkey, Algeria and Morocco, and starting June the automobile will become available under the Renault brand in Ukraine, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt and some African countries.
The new model will be manufactured at the group’s factory in Curitiba, Brazil, which is also manufacturing the Sandero, Sandero Stepway and Logan models.
In Romania, Dacia Duster, the sixth model of the Romanian-French automobile maker Dacia, will be avialble for between 10,500 euros – the 4X2, 1.6 and 105HP version – and 15,600 euros – the Laureate 4X4 1.5 dCi, 110HP version, according to the company.
The less expensive version is a 4×4 model equipped with a 105HP engine running on gasoline. Its selling price will be 10,500 euros, all taxes included. The price for the same version equipped with a diesel engine and full options equipping reaches 13,800 euros.
The Duster 4×4 model will be available starting at 12,300 euros, all taxes included, for a version equipped with a 1.6 105HP engine, running up to 15,600 euros for the 1.5 dCI 110HP diesel model.
Duster is said to be almost 5,000 euros less expensive than its competitors. The first SUV in the history of Dacia may also be acquired under the car scrappage programme in Romania that this year started on February 18. According to the official presentation, Dacia Duster is a tough, reliable and easy-to-use 4×4 aimed at motorists seeking an everyday car with genuine off-road ability.
With a length of 4.31 metres and a width of 1.82 metres, Dacia Duster is very compact. Its proportions ensure that it is as at home in built-up areas as it is off the beaten track. While it clearly belongs to the world of all-terrain vehicles, Dacia Duster displays attractive lines, reads the official presentation.
From the front, it exudes an impression of toughness: the wide wheel arches, the imposing lines of the chrome grille and the sump guard clearly emphasise the 4×4 DNA of Dacia Duster.
Seen from the side, the high ground clearance, clearly defined wheelarches and protective mouldings encourage the driver to tackle even the toughest roads and tracks. With the Look Pack, owners of Dacia Duster can enhance the vehicle’s good looks. This pack includes 16-inch aluminium alloy wheels, roof bars, extra-tinted rear glass, and satin-finish chrome exterior mirrors, front and rear skid plates, and sills.
A comprehensive range of accessories (including broad door protectors and styling bars) will complete this unique look. Dacia Duster can comfortably seat up to five adults and offers both front and rear occupants the same amount of space as the Dacia Logan saloon.
Dacia Duster’s boot capacity – up to 0,475 cubic metres VDA (depending on version) – is also very competitive given the vehicle’s compact dimensions. With the rear benchseat folded, Dacia Duster offers an impressive carrying capacity of up to 1,636 cubic metres VDA (depending on version).
Dacia Duster benefits from Renault’s acclaimed expertise in the area of safety, Dacia’s 4×4 features Bosch 8.1 ABS, as well as EBV electronic brakeforce distribution and emergency brake assist. Dacia Duster is the brand’s first vehicle to feature ESC as an option on certain versions, as well as CSV understeer control and ASR traction control.
This option also allows torque to be transferred away from a spinning wheel in 4×4 mode to improve traction when diagonal wheel spin occurs. On the passive safety front, Dacia Duster is fitted, as standard, with two front airbags (depending on market) and three-point seat belts with load limiters for the front seats. Depending on the version, two lateral head/thorax airbags are fitted in addition to the driver and passenger front airbags.
Particular attention has been paid to anti-corrosion protection thanks to several measures: wax-injected under-body and opening panel hollow sections; mastic sealing of exterior joints; additional wax treatment of under-body mechanical components; stone chip protection for under-body, sills and wheel arches.
The 4×4 running gear uses tried and tested components, sourced from the Alliance (Nissan rear axle and coupling, new six-speed TL8 gearbox derived from the TL4 gearbox that has been well-proven in the Renault and Nissan ranges).
In order to underline its high build quality, Dacia Duster is backed up by a three-year or 100,000-km warranty in the majority of its European markets. Official Dacia estimates indicate that the Duster SUV output this year could make up 20 percent of Dacia’s Romanian factory’s production, that is more than 60,000 units, ranking third in terms of volume after Sandero and Logan Sedan.
At the March 4-14 anniversary Geneva Motor Show, Dacia has set up its largest stand ever, covering 770 square metres, outstretching Saab, Daihatsu, Suzuki and Dodge.
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